Sunday
One gun's deadly journey to Newark
Tracking the flow of illegal weapons into city takes law enforcement sleuths to Florida
The weapon's 1,100-mile passage from gun store to killing scene was the work of a small ring of smugglers who helped feed Newark's lucrative underground arms market. Exploiting Florida's lenient gun laws, they bought dozens of high-powered pistols to resell on the streets of New Jersey, home to some of the country's toughest firearm restrictions.
Federal agents and local police spent four years investigating the gun-running pipeline. No one questioned the importance of stopping the flow: In addition to the gun that killed Tobias, at least nine others turned up at Newark crime scenes. One was used to pistol-whip a worker in a bodega robbery; others were found on suspected drug dealers.
The smuggling operation shows what local authorities face as they battle a resurgence in gun violence. Murders last year in Newark rose to the highest level since 1990. Nonfatal shootings rose for the fourth straight year. And police recovered nearly 900 illegal guns in 2006, a record.
At the heart of this struggle is the insatiable demand for weapons in cities and an inexhaustible supply from Southern states like Florida, where it is relatively easy to buy them.
Labels: guns
// posted by Alice @ 7/01/2007 02:30:00 AM 
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